While talking with my friend’s friend, I kept thinking “something is missing” on her face.

Her skin looked good, her hair was amazing, but it took a while for me to put my finger on it: She didn’t have any eyelashes.

She had a beautiful face, yet her eyes faded into the background rather than being a beautiful asset.

With each passing decade, the eyelashes shrink and thin. Someone in their 20s has long, flirty eyelashes. In our 30s, the lashes maintain fairly well. In our 40s, the lashes start to shrink. In our 50s, our lashes just aren’t what they used to be. In the 60s, lashes are mere stubble.

One client in her 60s asked me last week, “Where did my lashes go?”

The great news is that we have the option to grow them back! There are more than 50 lash growing products on the market. I recommend RevitaLash or ELASTIlash by Obagi for several reasons.

Both will grow the lashes longer, thicker and fuller. They won’t darken the lashes like Latisse, but the cost is a lot less. Latisse is about $360 for a six-month supply versus $120 or $130 for ELASTIlash or RevitaLash, respectively.

RevitaLash was born out of a doctor’s need to offer his wife a solution after chemotherapy treatments left her eyelashes sparse. A portion of the profits goes to fund breast cancer research.

Depending on your age, in 8 to 12 weeks lashes will grow longer, thicker and fuller. Just use the brush applicator only once a day at bedtime to the base of the lashes to boost the beauty of your natural lashes. After your lashes grow long, just use the product three or four times a week to maintain them.

With a little help, you will soon be on your way to long, flirty lashes…just another easy, affordable way to keep you feeling as young on the outside as you feel on the inside.

“Is it too late for me?’

While it is better to prevent than to repair, reversing decades sun damage and natural aging is possible. One of the main causes of aging skin is the lack of collagen so my biggest challenge is to stimulate collagen on a cellular level.

Think of it this way: Young skin has collagen fibers, which are held in place by bonds that form a net. Each decade, we lose collage and that causes the net to sag.

Using products and facial treatments, we can stimulate collage production, repairing the net and plumping the skin from the inside out to reveal smoother, softer and younger looking skin.

An esthetician’s job is to work with the client to rebuild the components of the skin that have been lost over time. A proven approach to rebuild collagen is to do a series of facial peels.

By removing the buildup of dead skin cells on the surface of the skin, signals are sent evoking a wound response that says to the skin cells, “Hey, all that dead skin is gone. Let’s make fresh, healthy skin cells to replace the ones we lost.”

Facial peels will diminish fine lines, lift pigment, stimulate collagen and increase cell turnover.

So, yes, Virginia, there is hope for restoring a new radiance to your skin.

For more information, Call Darcia @ Mountain Radiance, 828-627-2711

Join our esthetician, Darcia, in October for A Spa Day.  From 9am to 6pm, Spend some time with the Mountain Radiance team and discover a new and refreshed you.  On hand to celebrate with you are several top representatives for Obagi, Glominerals, and Allergan.

Offering Value

Mountain Radiance wants to make our Spa Day special!  To help you look and feel your best, we are lowering our prices on the best beauty products like Obagi, Glominerals, Revitalash, and more.  This is your day to look fabulous and save money while doing it.

• 15% off all Obagi Products
• 10% off all Glominerals
• 10% off Revitalash
• 10% off Revitabrow
• 10% off Revita
• Free UV skin analysis

All Day Fun

We want you to spend the day with us.  Come out and enjoy refreshments and door prizes.  This is sure to make your trip worth while.

We are also featuring an open house.  Meet Darcia and the staff.  They, along with representatives from Obagi, Glominerals, and Allergan will be able to answer all of your beauty questions.

Directions

Mountain Radiance is located in the Haywood Professional Park, Exit 105 on HWY 23, next to the Coffee Cup Cafe.

I consider every one of my clients to be my friend and I am so excited to be able to help them with their transformation.

” Hope to see you here!”
-Darcia

Haywood Professional Park, 24 Falcon Crest Lane, Clyde
Exit 105 – Adjacent to Coffee Cup Café

Open House  ●   Displays  ●  Refreshments  ●  Door Prizes

15 % off all OBAGI®  Products  (phone orders taken for current clients)

10% off all glōminerals (phone orders taken for current clients)

10% off Revitalash, Revitabrow, and Hair by Revita

Sign up for FREE Consults with UV Skin Analysis

Come meet the regional Obagi and glominerals representatives

Permanent laser hair removal requires multiple treatments. This is because the treatment only kills the actively growing hair follicles, about 25% of them at any one time. For best results 4 or more treatments are required about 4 – 6 weeks apart.

Now through Feb. 28, Save $125 or more when you buy a package of four treatments (minimum of $500) at 25 percent off. For example, full legs or full back treatments are $250 per treatment so you could save $250 by buying a package of four. Save $125 on a package of four underarm or bikini line treatments.*

The Lightsheer diode laser is the gold standard for laser hair reduction and its chilltip maximizes patient comfort. Our clients have noted that this is more comfortable and frequently more effective than laser hair removal devices used in other practices clients have been thrilled with the results. — Dr. Allan Zacher

It’s a wonderful feeling to know that I can get up each morning and not run to the bathroom to shave. Yay! Only four treatments and all those pesky black chin hairs are gone!” — Judy R. Of Waynesville.

*Not combined with other offers

As the Medical Director of Mountain Radiance, I reviewed equipment for over a year before deciding which was the BEST laser for our medical spa – a combination of the most efficient and the least painful.

During this year long process I attended meetings and product demonstrations. I personally had my back “lasered” by several platforms (different “brands” of lasers that use completely different technologies). My back is roughly the same surface area as full legs and it was very important to me that I experience this process so I would understand it better.

I would refer you to our article about “How it works” so you can review the efficacy of this process and what you have to do to understand whether this is a technology for you, also what you must do to prepare (avoid sun exposure in the area to be treated!).

So, I had my entire back “lasered” with three different brands of lasers which use different wavelengths of laser light and different cooling / pain controlling technologies.

The first system I tried was the Candela systems of “GentleLase” and “GentleYAG”. My impression is that the manufacturer (Candela) it *stating* that these lasers are gentle but in actually, to me and my experience, they are not. The GentleLase system does not touch the skin with the laser head, it uses a stretch and spray system of coolant that cools the skin at the time the laser fires. Not only did I personally find this system painful, when we demonstrated it to our office staff they all found it painful and unpleasant, we had several people who had crescent moon shaped burns on the skin! These were like sunburn and did go away, but still!

Incredibly (to me) is the fact that some of the hair removal spas out there are actually advertising this system as “painless”. Complicating their sales approach is that they only sell “packages” so you have to commit to buying an expensive package and then you find out that it’s painful.

The other system we tried was Sciton (pronounced “Sigh – ton”). I found this to be painful as well, and during useage over several months we found that for our clients it was not as effective as we would have wanted.

The LightSheer uses a liquid cooled synthetic sapphire tip which truly is nearly painless in some areas and under some circumstances. There are more “tender” locations where there may be some brief discomfort – like the snap of a rubber band – but as a rule I found it to be much, much more comfortable than the two other major brands that I had tried.

When you are choosing a laser hair removal service, consider the highly effective and much more comfortable LightSheer, such as we have at Mountain Radiance.

Allan Zacher, MD

Dermatologists have warned for years that indoor tanning can cause skin cancer and should be avoided. The doctors’ latest broadside comes in a selective review of scientific evidence on the risks and benefits of indoor tanning. Researcher Jody A. Levine, MD, is a pediatrician and senior dermatology resident at SUNY Downstate Medical Center in Brooklyn, N.Y.

“We know that ultraviolet radiation is a carcinogen just like tobacco,” Levine tells WebMD. “Radiation use has been declared a carcinogen by the National Institutes of Health. And the World Health Organization recognizes that no person under 18 should use a sun bed.”

Levine and colleagues conclude that indoor tanning is a dangerous practice — especially for teens. The American Academy of Dermatology and the American Medical Association have called for a ban on the sale and use of tanning equipment for nonmedical purposes. And the FDA and CDC each encourage people to avoid the use of tanning beds and sun lamps.

Levine and colleagues say the indoor tanning industry promotes one dangerous myth: That getting a “base tan” or a “pre-vacation tan” will protect you from planned sun exposure.

This “particularly dangerous practice,” Levine and colleagues say, actually multiplies the amount of radiation a person gets from sun exposure.

“People think this base tan will help protect them from the sun’s damaging rays, which is completely false,” Levine says. “Tanning under the sun gives protection equal to only suntan lotion of SPF 3 — and sun-bed tanning gives even less protection than natural sun tan. The risk is not just the double hit of radiation. After getting a base tan, people are more likely to go out in the sun without sunscreen under the false pretense of being protected.”

Until recently, it was thought that sun exposure caused relatively minor skin cancers but not deadly melanoma. Levine and colleagues say that this new evidence strongly implicates sun exposure — and indoor tanning — as a cause of melanoma.

QUICK FACTS:

* Ultraviolet radiation (UVR) is a proven human carcinogen, according to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.1

* New high-pressure sunlamps emit doses of UVR that can be as much as 12 times that of the sun.1

* Nearly 30 million people tan indoors in the U.S. every year3; 2.3 million of them are teens.5

* On an average day, more than one million Americans use tanning salons.7

* Seventy one percent of tanning salon patrons are girls and women aged 16-29.

* Exposure to tanning beds before age 35 increases melanoma risk by 75 percent.2

* People who use tanning beds are 2.5 times more likely to develop squamous cell carcinoma and 1.5 times more likely to develop basal cell carcinoma.6

* The indoor tanning industry has an annual estimated revenue of $5 billion.5

Bottom Line:

Get the look you like without the damage that can occur with tanning equipment.

2. IARC. The association of use of sunbeds with cutaneous malignant melanoma and other skin cancers: A systematic review. International Journal of Cancer. 2007:120:1116-11

3. Kwon HT, Mayer JA, Walker KK, Yu H, Lewis EC, Belch GE. Promotion of frequent tanning sessions by indoor tanning facilities: two studies. J Am Acad Dermatol 2003; 46:700-5.

4. Swerdlow AJ, Weinstock MA. Do tanning lamps cause melanoma? An epidemiologic assessment. J Am Acad Dermatol 1998; 38:89-98.

5. Demierre MF. Time for the national legislation of indoor tanning to protect minors. Arch Dermatol 2006; 139:520-4.

6. Karagas MR, Stannard VA, Mott LA, Slattery MJ, Spencer SK, and Weinstock MA. Use of Tanning Devices and Risk of Basal Cell and Squamous Cell Skin Cancers. J. Natl. Cancer Inst. 2002 94: 224; doi:10.1093/jnci/94.3.224

7. Whitmore SE, Morison, WL, Potten CS, Chadwick C. Tanning salon exposure and molecular alterations. J Am Acad Dermatol 2001; 44:775-80.

You may have enlarged sebaceous (oil) glands. Sometimes, precancerous and cancerous lesions can occur with aged and photoaged skin. Sunscreens and sun protection are important to prevent further progression of photoaging.

Your skin requires different skin care as you age. As we grow older, our skin doesn’t produce new cells at the same pace. Environmental and biological factors take their toll. Often we develop enlarged pores, and the effects of the sun become evident in sunspots, freckles and wrinkles.

Here are two tips to enhance natural skin care as you grow older:

1. If you smoke, stop. Smoking has been shown to accelerate aging of skin, so quitting now is important for good skin health.

2. Eat a well-balanced diet — with or without a multivitamin. A healthy diet helps the skin get the nutrition it needs to help repair ongoing damage from the sun and other environmental elements.

There are many topical nonprescription and prescription products available that help maintain and protect your skin’s health. Ask your doctor or skin care specialist which medications are best for you.

Reviewed by the doctors at The Cleveland Clinic Department of Dermatology.

The skin gradually changes as you get older and to keep your skin looking its best, your skincare regimen should address the unique needs of each decade. Understanding the physiologic changes that are occurring in each decade can help you to better take care of your skin. It’s never too late to attain healthy skin; read below for some of the best ways you can attain healthy skin if you are in your 30s or older.

30s

Most women start to see the first signs of aging in the early to mid-30s. These signs are accelerated in those who have spent extensive time in the sun in their teens and 20s. The result:

* Skin appears drier
* Fine expression lines and wrinkles begin to appear
* Uneven complexion and sunspots
* Skin starts to lose some of its youthful glow

Skincare needs:
Sun protection is a daily necessity. This will prevent continued sun-induced skin cell breakdown and uneven complexion. It is essential that your product contains both broad spectrum UVB (sunburn-inducing) and UVA (skin aging and skin cancer-inducing) ingredients.

Moisturizers that utilize the best anti-aging technology available can help to rehydrate the skin as well as heal damaged skin

Antioxidants are crucial because they are the best way to fight skin damage that is caused by environmental stressors (e.g., cigarette smoke, pollution). The best topical antioxidants available are idebenone, amino-peptides, coffeeberry, green tea extract, coenzyme Q10, vitamin C and vitamin E.

40s

Many of the changes that started to appear in the 30s are more pronounced in the 40s. During this decade the skin changes are primarily due to premenopausal changes occurring inside the body. Skin cells start to turn over even more slowly than in the 30s. The skin’s collagen starts to break down. The skin’s elastic tissue starts to lose some of its elasticity. The result:

* Skin gets drier
* Skin appears duller
* Skin starts to lose tightness
* Fine expression lines appear around the eyes and mouth
* Signs of photo-aging increase (e.g., sunspots, blotchiness, unevenness, lines)

Skincare needs:
Sun protection daily.

Soap-free cleansers will effectively cleanse the skin without stripping it of its moisture. Bar soaps tend to dry the skin and are not recommended for use on aging skin.

Moisturizers continue to be essential, particularly moisturizers taking advantage of ingredients like hyaluronic acid (skin’s natural moisturizer).

Antioxidants are more important now, not just for their preventive benefits, but because they can correct cell damage, leading to improved appearance of fine lines and wrinkles.

Eye creams that contain hydrating ingredients and retinol

Retinoids are vitamin A-derived products that can build collagen, repair sun damage and reverse fine lines and wrinkles. This ingredient is highly effective but can prove too irritating to sensitive skin.

Exfoliants are essential to increase skin cell turnover, and bring out more radiant skin. Exfoliants can be easily incorporated into a skincare regimen by introducing an alpha-hydroxy (AHA) or beta-hydroxy (BHA) acid cleanser or lotion. Physical exfoliation using scrubs is also another option, but there is a high risk of being overly aggressive in the application.

50s

By this decade the changes seen in the 40s are more pronounced. As estrogen levels drop post-menopause, the skin’s natural oil production decreases due to the reduced size of the oil glands. The result is even drier skin. The skin also gets more fragile, therefore it is injured easily and is slow to heal. There is also increased loss of elasticity, especially around the eyes. The skin around the neck may also start to droop.

The result:

* Skin looks dry and lackluster
* Skin is more sensitive to aggressive anti-aging products
* Expression lines and wrinkles are deeper
* Eyelids begin to wrinkle
* Neck starts to droop

Skincare needs:
Sunscreens in a moisturizing base

Thick moisturizers are best suited for this type of skin

Night cream particularly containing soothing, moisturizing products

Eye creams containing corrective ingredients, in a rich emollient formulation.

60s

The signs of aging are more pronounced in the sixth decade. Wrinkles are well-defined. The effects of gravity on the eyelids, neck, peri-oral area and jawline are more marked. It is less likely that skincare products will be able to correct much of the damage that has occurred by this time. Surgical interventions or cosmetic enhancements might be necessary. A dermatologist or plastic surgeon can correct many of these more advanced facial wrinkles using dermal fillers containing hyaluronic acid, like Restylane, Juvederm and Perlane. Wrinkles caused by repetitive expressions over the years can be corrected with Botox injections.

By Rosemarie Ingleton, M.D.
New York City dermatologist

Your busy lifestyle leaves little time for pampering skin care. The result: Your skin isn’t the baby-soft body glove you were born with. As you age, your skin gradually becomes thinner and finely wrinkled. Oil-producing (sebaceous) glands grow less active, leaving your skin drier. The number of blood vessels in your skin decreases, your skin becomes more fragile, and you lose your youthful color and glow.

Good skin care — such as avoiding the sun, washing your skin gently and applying moisturizer regularly — can help delay the natural aging process and prevent many skin problems. These simple skin-care habits will help you protect your skin to keep it healthy and glowing for years to come.

Protect yourself from the sun

The most important way to take care of your skin is to protect it from the sun. Ultraviolet light — the invisible but intense rays from the sun — damages your skin, causing deep wrinkles, dry, rough skin, liver spots, and more serious disorders, such as noncancerous (benign) and cancerous (malignant) skin tumors. In fact, most of the changes seen in aging skin are actually caused by a lifetime of sun exposure.

For the most complete sun protection, use all three of these methods:

• Avoid the sun during high-intensity hours. The sun’s rays are most damaging from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Reduce the time you spend outdoors during these hours.
• Wear protective clothing. Cover your skin with clothing, such as long-sleeved shirts, long pants and wide-brimmed hats. Also, keep in mind that certain clothing styles and fabrics offer better protection from the sun than do others. For example, long-sleeved shirts offer better protection than short-sleeved shirts do. And tightly woven fabrics such as denim are better than are loosely woven fabrics such as knits. Several companies now make sun protective clothing (SPF clothing), which is specifically designed to block out ultraviolet rays while keeping you cool and comfortable.
• Use sunscreen. Choose a broad-spectrum sunscreen with a sun protection factor (SPF) greater than 15. Apply liberally 20 minutes before going outdoors and reapply every two hours, after heavy sweating or after being in water.

Don’t smoke

Smoking accelerates aging of your skin and increases wrinkles. Skin changes from smoking can appear in young adults after 10 years of smoking.

Smoking causes narrowing of the tiny blood vessels in the outermost layers of skin. This decreases blood flow, depleting the skin of oxygen and nutrients, such as vitamin A, that are important to skin health. All of these factors increase damage to the elastic fibers (elastin) and collagen, which give your skin strength and elasticity.

In addition, the repetitive facial expressions you make when smoking — such as pursing your lips when inhaling and squinting your eyes to keep out smoke — may contribute to wrinkles. It’s also possible that repeated exposure to the heat from burning cigarettes may damage your facial skin over time.

Wash your skin gently

Cleansing is an essential part of caring for your skin. The key is to treat your skin gently.

• Use warm water and limit bath time. Hot water and long showers or baths remove oils from your skin. Limit your bath or shower time to about 15 minutes or less, and use warm, rather than hot, water.
• Avoid strong soaps. Strong soaps — those most capable of stripping oil from your skin — can leave your skin dry. Instead, choose mild soaps or detergent substitutes with added oils and fats. Good choices include Dove, Vanicream, Cetaphil and Purpose.
• Avoid irritating additives. If your skin is sensitive, avoid products containing perfumes or dyes. These can irritate your skin and may trigger an allergic response.
• Remove eye makeup carefully. Use a soft sponge, cotton cloth or cotton balls when removing eye makeup to avoid damaging the delicate tissue around your eyes. If you wear heavy, waterproof makeup, you may need to use an oil-based product, such as Eucerin, Aquaphor or petroleum jelly, to remove makeup.
• Pat dry. After washing or bathing, gently pat or blot your skin dry with a towel so that some moisture remains on the skin. Immediately moisturize your skin with an oil or cream.

Moisturize regularly

Moisturizers help maintain your skin’s natural moisture levels. They work by providing a seal over your skin — to keep water from escaping — or by slowly releasing water into your skin.

The moisturizer that’s best for you and the frequency with which you need to moisturize depend on many factors, including your skin type, your age and whether you have specific conditions such as acne. A good way to test if you need a moisturizer is to wait 20 minutes after bathing. If your skin feels tight, you should apply a moisturizer.

Select a moisturizer with an SPF of at least 15 to help protect your skin from damaging ultraviolet rays. If you have sensitive skin, look for products free of heavy dyes, perfumes or other additives. If your skin is very dry, you may want to apply an oil, such as baby oil, while your skin is still moist. Oil has more staying power than moisturizers do and prevents the evaporation of water from the surface of your skin. If your skin is oily, you may want to skip moisturizing.

Shave carefully

Shaving is a common and inexpensive way to remove unwanted hair. But shaving can cause skin irritations, especially if your skin is thin, dry or very sensitive. For a smooth shave:

• Press a warm wash cloth on your skin before shaving to soften the hair. Or shave after a warm bath or shower.
• Don’t shave dry skin, which can cause razor burn. Apply shaving cream, lotion or gel before shaving to protect and lubricate your skin.
• Use a clean, sharp razor. If using an electric razor, don’t use the closest setting, which can aggravate the skin.
• Shave in the direction of hair growth, not against it.
• Rinse your skin afterward with warm water.

If irritation does occur, apply a lotion that doesn’t contain ethyl or isopropyl alcohol. Though alcohol and alcohol-based products may feel cooling, they don’t really soothe irritated skin because the alcohol evaporates rapidly from the skin.